We have had an amazing summer with nearly 1500 students attending our camps! Thank you all for your continued support of our program and for entrusting your kids to us. We are going to have an in-person Hackathon, panel discussion, and closing ceremony on campus at USC on Saturday, August 7 to wrap up the summer. If you are interested in attending, please fill out the registration form at https://airtable.com/
Summary of Events
8:00a.m.-2:00p.m. – Hackathon
12:00-1:00p.m. – Lunch (provided for free for all participants)
1:00-2:00p.m. – Panel discussion on the need for K12 Computer Science education (please be in seats no later than 12:45p.m.)
2:00-3:00p.m. – Closing Ceremonies and Award Presentation for the inaugural Jim Valentine Scholarship
Location
All the events will take place on campus at USC in the Taper Hall of Humanities (THH). Parents do not need to stay for the entire event, but please consider attending the Panel Discussion and Closing Ceremonies. Regardless, all kids MUST check in at 8:00a.m. and be picked up no later than 3:00p.m.
Hackathon
For those of you unfamiliar with the term, a hackathon is an event where programmers come together for a certain amount of time to work on any program of their choosing. We will have some of our TAs in attendance to work with the kids on their programs and help them with any questions they have.
The event is open to all K12 students, regardless whether they have attended a camp with us. The hackathon will run from 8:00a.m.-2:00p.m., and we will provide lunch for the kids. We will not be providing and computers, so students will need to bring their own devices (tablet for K-2nd grade students for Scratch Jr. and laptops for 3rd-12th grade students for the other languages).
Panel Discussion
We have an amazing panel lined up that will be discussing K12 Computer Science education from different perspectives. The panel will be comprised of:
–Megan Smith, Former Chief Technology Officer of the United States and Assistant to the President (serving under President Obama) and CEO and founder of shift7
–Coach Kathy Kemper, Founder and CEO of the Institute for Education and Founding Donor of the CS@SC Camps
–Derek Richardson, Professional NBA Referee and founder of Why Can’t We Make a Difference
–Silvia Rivas, Director of Special Projects/GATE for the Rowland Unified School District
–Prof. Jeffrey Miller, Director of the CS@SC Camps and Professor of Computer Science and Information Technology Practice at the University of Southern California
It will be moderated by the CS@SC Camps Co-Director, Prof. Nayeon Kim, who is a Senior Lecturer of Information Technology at the University of Southern California.
The panel will run from 1:00-2:00p.m. and is ideally suited for parents who want to know more about K12 Computer Science education and the CS@SC Camps. The panel will begin promptly at 1:00p.m., so please plan to be in your seat no later than 12:45p.m.
Closing Ceremonies and Awards
The Closing Ceremonies and Awards will take place from 2:00-3:00p.m. The camp administrators will say a few words about the program and the amazing summer we have had, then the faculty who recorded the lectures will give out awards.
The inaugural Jim Valentine Scholarship will accompany the awards. Jim Valentine is Coach Kathy Kemper’s husband who passed away during the spring of 2021 after a long battle with metastatic prostate cancer. Jim was a long-term supporter of the CS@SC Camps who lived a vibrant and active life, known for taking risks, starting companies, and always investing in the future. Coach Kemper has graciously offered to continue her support of the Camps through a scholarship in his name.
COVID-19 Restrictions
The County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health and the University of Southern California require all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, to wear a mask covering the nose and mouth while indoors. By attending this event, you agree not to hold the University of Southern California, the CS@SC Camps, or any employee or volunteer of the CS@SC Camps liable for any transmission of COVID-19 that may occur as a result of attending this event. If your child or anyone your child has been around recently has developed symptoms of COVID-19, please do not bring your child to the event.
RSVP
If you are interested in attending, please fill out the registration form at https://airtable.com/
Questions
As always, if you have any questions, please respond to this email. We look forward to seeing many of you on Saturday!
Jeff and Nayeon
Jeffrey Miller, Ph.D.
Professor of Computer Science and Information Technology Practice
Founder, CS@SC Summer Camps
Nayeon Kim
Senior Lecturer of Information Technology
Co-Director, CS@SC Summer Camps
